How to Dispose your old Credit Card?

It’s the same with the length of your credit history, which comprises 15 percent of your score. The longer you’ve had a credit history, the better your score will be. So if your Gap card is from your college years, it’s wise to keep it open.

If you opened credit cards for certain purposes (like, say, an extra 20 percent off at the Gap), then you may have a few extra lying around that you’re wondering what to do with. You don’t use them—you’re more of Club Monaco girl now—but is closing them the smartest solution?

Not necessarily. For one, you could hurt your credit score, depending. That’s because your credit utilization and your credit history length will take a hit if you close a card.

Your credit utilization is how much of your credit limit you’re using, and it comprises 30 percent of your FICO score. Let’s say you have two credit cards: Your old Gap card, with a $500 limit, and a run-of-the-mill rewards card you use for most purchases, with a $3,000 limit. Your total credit limit is $3,500, but you should aim to use no more than 30 percent of that at a time, or $1,050 (and ideally you’ll top out at 10 percent credit usage). Keeping the Gap card open gives you a bit more wiggle room.

If you know you won’t be tempted to use them, and they don’t have an annual fee, then leave them open. If they do have a fee, try to negotiate. “Contact your credit card provider and see if they’ll waive the fee in exchange for keeping you read related to credit card information on merchantstronghold.com 

One other idea: If you’re worried your bank or creditor may close the account due to inactivity, you can set up a recurring auto-payment on it (like your electricity bill) that you know will be paid off each month. We wrote about that here. Personally, I’m not sure I would worry too much about this and I would prefer the peace of mind of not using the cards at all, but it is an option.